Declaration of claims

The creditor must declare his claims prior to the judgment initiating the procedure backup, of judicial redress or judicial liquidation.

Certain claims posterior at the opening judgment and which do not enjoy the privilege of payment (i.e. priority payment of other claims) must also be declared.

Creditors must also report collateral granted by the company in respect of such claims. This declaration must specify not only the nature of the security, but also its plate.

The wage claims and maintenance claims (such as maintenance) are not covered by the reporting obligation, but will be settled on a priority basis.

Claims that have not been declared are not taken into account in the collective proceedings. So they will not be paid.

The deadline for the declaration shall be 2 months from the publication of the opening judgment in the Bodacc: titleContent.

Exceptions:

• If the creditor is not located in mainland France, the period is extended to 4 months.
• If the collective proceedings are opened in an overseas department or authority and the creditor is not located there, the time limit is extended to 4 months.

Creditors with a security right (pledge, mortgage) or bound by a published contract (such as a lease) are notified personally by the judicial representative within 15 days of the judgment initiating the collective proceedings. The creditor then has a period of 2 months from the warning sent by the agent.

Shape

No form shall be required for the submission of the declaration of claims.

The declaration of claims by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt (LRAR) provides proof that the deadlines have been respected.

Standard reporting forms are available.

Declaration of claims

Content

The declaration of claims shall contain the following particulars:

• Amount of the claim due on the date of the opening judgment, with an indication of the sums due and the date of their due dates
• Nature and basis of security with which the claim may be secured
• Arrangements for calculating interest which has not stopped
• Evidence to prove the existence and amount of the claim if it does not arise from a security (valuation of the claim if the amount has not been fixed)
• Indication of the court seised if the claim declared is the subject of a dispute

Where the amount of the claim has not yet been established by a security or has not yet been definitively fixed, the declaration shall be made on the basis of a evaluation.

Where the claim does not arise from an enforceable instrument (judgment, notarized loan, for example), it must be certified as genuine by the creditor.

If the creditor is an administration, it is necessary to specify the provisional or definitive nature of the claim.

Supporting documents (e.g. copies of invoices, purchase orders or delivery orders) must be attached to this declaration under a voucher.

Where a claim is brought to the attention of the agent by the debtor, it shall be considered as declared.

A creditor who has not made his declaration within the time limit can no longer assert his rights during the course of the proceedings: he shall be considered as forclos.

The authorization to declare his claim becomes possible again if the creditor demonstrates that the delay is not of his own making (for example, hospitalization) or that it comes from the company in difficulty which forgot to mention it in the list of creditors.

In this case, the creditor must file a request for a statement of foreclosure at the Commercial Court Registry.

This request shall be addressed to the Judge-Commissioner within six months of the publication of the opening decision in the Bodacc: titleContent.

If the creditor obtains a favorable answer from the judge-commissioner, he can then declare his claim within 1 month of notification of the decision of foreclosure record.

The creditor's representative or liquidator shall draw up a statement of claims and make proposals for admission or rejection.

Any challenges are decided by the Judge Commissioner.